Shawn Logan, Calgary Sun

City council approved changes to the taxi bylaw Monday that will allow drivers to charge a $100 cleanup fee if a passenger pukes or expels other bodily fluids in a cab.

The purpose of the change, according to a report presented to council, is to entice more drivers to work late-night hours, as it will allow them “to recoup a portion of their out-of-pocket costs to sanitize their taxis after illness incidents.”

Council was told police will be used to enforce the rule, but Coun. Joe Magliocca questioned whether that will be the best use of officers’ time.

“We have to come up with a better solution than that,” he told his council colleagues.

“We just can’t be relying on police to start hunting a guy down for $100 at two o’clock in the morning when there’s all the bars letting out.

“I’d like to investigate that a little further.”

Mario Henriques, an official in the city’s licencing department, told council further proposed changes coming later this year or early in 2015 could remove the need for police to get involved.

“We can discuss that particular issue of making it a bylaw offence rather than a Criminal Code offence,” he said.